1. Field
The present invention relates to a refrigerator, and, more particularly, to a refrigerator, which can prevent receiving boxes stacked above one another from interfering with each other when the receiving boxes are opened together.
2. Description of the Related Art
A refrigerator is an apparatus to keep food fresh using a temperature difference that occurs when a refrigerant circulating in a refrigeration cycle undergoes phase transition via repeated compression, condensation, and expansion thereof.
The interior of the refrigerator is generally divided into a freezing compartment and a refrigerating compartment, according to an interior temperature thereof. The freezing compartment generally maintains a temperature band of −12° C.˜24° C., and the refrigerating compartment generally maintains a temperature band of 0° C.˜7° C. In particular, the refrigerating compartment contains a separate space to maintain an appropriate interior temperature and humidity well suited to storage of vegetables, fruits, etc. Specifically, a separate receiving box is provided in the refrigerating compartment, and a temperature and humidity of the receiving box are adjustable.
FIG. 1 is a sectional view illustrating a receiving box installed in a conventional refrigerator.
As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of shelves 2 is installed in a refrigerating compartment 1. The shelves 2 serve to divide the interior of the refrigerating compartment 1 into several regions, allowing several kinds of food to be sorted and stored in the respective regions of the refrigerating compartment 1. In particular, receiving boxes 3 and 4 are installed in lower regions of the refrigerating compartment 1 and can serve to separately store food that must be kept fresh. The receiving boxes 3 and 4 are stacked above one another. Here, a lower one of the receiving boxes is referred to as a first receiving box 3, and an upper one of the receiving boxes is referred to as a second receiving box 4.
To maximize utilization of the interior space of the refrigerating compartment 1, the first receiving box 3 and second receiving box 4 are arranged stepwise. Specifically, the first receiving box 3 protrudes forward relative to the second receiving box 4. More specifically, for food storage in the refrigerating compartment 1, in addition to the plurality of shelves 2, a refrigerating compartment door 6 is provided with racks 7 to receive containers, such as bottles. In light of the racks 7 occupying a predetermined interior space of the refrigerating compartment 1 when the refrigerating compartment door 6 is closed, the first receiving box 3 and second receiving box 4 must be arranged stepwise, to prevent the racks 7 from interfering with the receiving boxes 3 and 4 and also, to increase utilization of the interior space of the refrigerating compartment 1.
Although a top of the second receiving box 4 is able to be closed by the shelf 2 immediately thereabove, closing a top of the first receiving box 3 necessitates a separate cover 5 in addition to the shelf 2 thereabove. The cover 5 is used to close a specific portion of the first receiving box 3 which protrudes forward relative to the second receiving box 4 and thus, is still opened after the remaining portion of the first receiving box 3 is closed by the shelf 2. The cover 5 is coupled to the shelf 2 by means of hinges. A related technology is disclosed in Korean Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 10-2007-0065710.
However, in the arrangement of stacking the first receiving box 3 and second receiving box 4 above one another as shown in FIG. 1, simultaneously opening the first receiving box 3 and second receiving box 4 is problematic. As disclosed in the above-mentioned Patent Laid-Open Publication, when the first receiving box 3 is opened, the cover 5 is obliquely lifted upward along a frictional surface of the first receiving box 3. Accordingly, when opening the second receiving box 4, the second receiving box 4 collides with the upwardly-inclined cover 5 and cannot be opened. In conclusion, it is impossible to open both the first receiving box 3 and second receiving box 4 simultaneously. This makes it difficult to move food stored in the first receiving box 3 to the second receiving box 4, and vice versa, resulting in inconvenience of use.